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Barracuda
Barracuda are a South Korean vehicle manufacturer and racing team first established in 2109. They rocked the AGL in 2153 with a sudden and dominating performance and are responsible for the introduction of the Barracuda Challenge into the AGL season. Despite their small size they have made a massive impact on the league and remain very influential to this day. Gameplay Barracuda ships represent the epitome of speed in BallisticNG. For expert pilots only, Barracuda's model A and B craft are blisteringly fast and produce physics-defying cornering performance that almost seems to draw the ship out of the pilots' control. Barracuda airbrakes are very strong and very fast, and require either expertly timed slams or very finely controlled application. Mastering Barracuda ships takes a dedicated effort and the style of play is so far removed from normal craft that even switching back to an Omnicom or a G-Tek can take some getting used to. Barracuda ships carry no weapons and virtually no shields, so perfection is everything. Out at the front of the pack, there is very little combat to contend with - Barracuda is all about your skill versus the track. Team Evolution Barracuda were originally formed in Busan by motoring fan Kyung Han Cheo during January of 2109. They spent several years manufacturing South Korean cars, eventually expanding to supercars and performance vehicles. They built up a reasonable reputation for performance. In 2120, the company underwent a leadership switch; The explosion of AG tech occurring since 2115 convinced then CEO Junseo Kim to pursue AG vehicle manufacturing and they became a respected force in South Korea. A second leadership change occurring in 2150 allowed new CEO Ji-min Kim to begin development on two performance prototypes in response to the emergence of the AGRC. These prototypes were the Model 0 and Model B and represented Barracuda's design study on extreme performance in AG craft; the B in particular focused on top speed at the cost of every other aspect. Data collected from both of these machines led to the creation of the Barracuda Model A; Barracuda kept the machine secret until the AGL season of 2153. It was entered quietly and without fuss - and proceeded to dominate the competition. The ship carried no weapons and paper-thin shields, but its handling performance defied logic and its speed was beyond anything before seen in the league. With Barracuda's only pilot Jong-Su Hye Choi at the helm, the team easily won that year's championship, with their opponents unable to touch their extreme performance. Regulation changes to thrust and top speed enacted in 2154 saw their ship disallowed in the name of providing a level playing field for the other teams, but Barracuda were not concerned; they did not apply the race that season. They had already made an impression on the AGL and established themselves as a force to listen to. A single tweet from a Barracuda controlled account in January 2154 simply read "너는주의를 기울이고 있니?" In 2156, Barracuda launched their own racing championship in the form of the Barracuda Challenge league. This league invited the other teams to race on a specially built circuit with standardized ships - they were to use the new iteration of Barracuda's old Model B. This machine shocked fans by producing even faster performance than their original A. The other teams joined wholeheartedly. 2159 Season In 2159, Barracuda do not have a current track presence, satisfied instead to support their own league, the Barracuda Challenge. The Challenge season is short, only occupying a small portion of the year; but it has become a staple of every AGL fan's calendar. Taking place at a special venue outside of Busan, the track can be reconfigured to a number of different layouts to provide several rounds worth of racing. As the Challenge prioritises outright speed and piloting skill over combat prowess, Tenrai and Scorpio in particular have achieved considerable success here. As well as supporting their own race series, Barracuda manufacture several important types of AGRC equipment including airbrakes and powerplants. Barracuda airbrakes are now the de-facto standard for AGL teams. As usual, Barracuda remain quiet this year. Race fans continue to speculate; maybe Barracuda are developing something new? Notes The Barracuda Model 0 is not packaged with the game by default - instead, it can be downloaded on the steam workshop from this link. It is a completely playable ship and is part of the official canon despite it's status as mod content. The name "Barracuda" is a reference to the team "Piranha" from the WipEout series of games. Both piranhas and barracudas are fish known for their long, sharp teeth, hence the reference. The ship further references the Piranha from WipEout 2097 in particular as it has perfect stats and is a secret unlockable ship. Category:Team Category:Korea Category:Barracuda Category:Ship